Direct Mail/Postal

Postal Regulatory Commission moves forward on pension system review

Frank Washkuch March 17, 2010

The Postal Regulatory Commission said it will hire an actuarial consultant to review the pension-payment system used by the financially strapped US Postal Service. The USPS' Office of Inspector General released a report in January stating that the agency's current pension-funding system resulted in an overpayment of $75 billion from 1972 to 2009.

Asphalt producer EZ Street debuts government-focused direct mailer

Mary Elizabeth Hurn March 17, 2010

EZ Street Company, a producer of temperature-resistant asphalt, launched a direct mail campaign on March 17 targeting media and government officials. The company is using the effort, called "the spoken wheel," to drive attention to the state of US roads and urge state and federal authorities to increase funding for America's highway infrastructure.

Postal Service to experiment with PO box strategy

Frank Washkuch March 15, 2010

The US Postal Service, which revealed its 10-year plan to return to financial stability this month, will seek permission to change the classification of some consumer post office boxes. The move, which requires approval from the Postal Regulatory Commission, would free the USPS from pricing the boxes based on the rate of inflation.

Transformative direct mail package's envelope twist delivers personalization

Dean Rieck Copywriter, Direct Creative March 15, 2010

If you have kids, you know what Transformers are. They're toys that may look like a jet, for example, but move a few parts and it turns into a robot.

Creative campaigns from Sir Speedy/PIP, Rosetta, VistaPrint

March 15, 2010

Sir Speedy and PIP use Vertis' technology for dimensional mailings; Rosetta uses augmented reality to make it snow; VistaPrint uses social media to promote sweepstakes

Mailers regroup after postage increase plan

Frank Washkuch March 15, 2010

John Potter, CEO and postmaster general of the USPS, described the organization's challenges in restoring financial stability in stark terms last week. He expects a cumulative shortfall of $238 billion by 2020 as mail volume drops by 27 billion pieces.

Direct mail loses ground to digital post-recovery

Mary Elizabeth Hurn March 12, 2010

Direct marketers are beginning to see green shoots of economic recovery, but the media mix continues to shift and experts predict direct mail will never regain its dominance.

DMA, American Catalog Mailers Association pledge team effort on postal issues

Frank Washkuch March 11, 2010

Trade groups the Direct Marketing Association and the American Catalog Mailers Association pledged to work together on postal issues on March 11.

Postal Service plans second summer sale

Frank Washkuch March 04, 2010

The US Postal Service is planning a second "summer sale" that will provide a 30% rebate to eligible mailers on some services. The initiative, which will require Postal Regulatory Commission approval, is planned for July 1 through September 30.

Postal Service reports $592M January loss

Frank Washkuch March 03, 2010

The US Postal Service saw a net loss of $592 million for January, and a total loss of $890 million for the first four months of its 2010 fiscal year, according to preliminary financial data released by the Postal Regulatory Commission on March 3. The data was made public one day after the USPS revealed its 10-year financial recovery plan.

Click to read DMNews' 30th anniversary issue

What People are Saying

Great anniversary issue, DM News! Good perspective on how we have all changed over the years! Looking forward to the future of direct mail and DM News.
- Greg Bicket, President, Cox Target Media, providers of Valpak

The "Mail Volume" chart from the [anniversary edition] of DM News is a great illustration of the trends.
- David Asher, Risk Analysis Research Center, Office of Inspector General, USPS

DM News has published a wonderful tribute to PostCom Director-Emeritus Lee Epstein.
- Postcom editors